Southern Tuna Salad for Sandwiches

By
Diana Rattray
Diana Rattray
Diana Rattray
Southern-cuisine expert and cookbook author Diana Rattray has created more than 5,000 recipes and articles in her 20 years as a food writer.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Updated on 01/15/23
Southern tuna salad sandwich on multigrain toast

The Spruce Eats

Prep: 15 mins
Cook: 0 mins
Total: 15 mins
Servings: 3 to 4 servings

Southerners know how to make the best-tasting tuna salad sandwiches. The chopped hard-boiled egg and chopped dill pickle or dill relish are typical additions to a Southern-style tuna salad. Or, for a sweeter flavor, use chopped bread and butter pickles or sweet relish in the filling. To stretch the tuna further, add an extra hard-boiled egg.

This tuna salad recipe calls for canned or packaged white tuna, but feel free to use fresh poached albacore tuna (see below). White or albacore tuna is mild in flavor. If you prefer a stronger tuna flavor, you may choose to use light canned tuna, which might include skipjack, tongol, or yellowfin. You might even choose to use tuna packed in oil if you prefer that flavor.

Serve these sandwiches with potato chips or french fries for a satisfying lunch or sandwich supper. Or serve them with a cup of tomato soup. If you prefer a low-carb option, serve the tuna salad on lettuce leaves with sliced tomatoes or avocado wedges.

Cook Mode (Keep screen awake)

Ingredients

For Tuna Salad:

  • 1 (7-ounce) can tuna

  • 1 to 2 ribs celery, finely chopped

  • 1 large egg, hard-boiled, finely chopped

  • 3 tablespoons mayonnaise or more, as needed

  • 1 tablespoon finely chopped dill pickle, dill relish, or 1 to 2 teaspoons chopped dill

  • 1 to 2 tablespoons finely chopped onion, chopped parsley, or Dijon mustard, optional

  • Kosher salt, to taste

  • Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

To Assemble Sandwich:

  • Lettuce, optional

  • Sliced tomato, optional

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Southern tuna salad sandwich on multigrain toast

    The Spruce Eats

  2. Drain tuna.

    Tuna drained into a bowl

    The Spruce Eats

  3. Transfer tuna to a medium bowl and flake with a fork.

    Tuna broken up into pieces in a bowl with a fork

    The Spruce Eats

  4. Add celery and egg to tuna, along with mayonnaise and chopped dill pickle. If desired, add 1 or 2 tablespoons of finely chopped onion, chopped parsley, or Dijon mustard.

    Celery, onion, egg, and tuna in a bowl

    The Spruce Eats

  5. Taste and add salt and pepper, as needed, and more mayonnaise, if desired.

    Tuna salad ingredients combined together in a white bowl

    The Spruce Eats

  6. Toast or grill bread or rolls, if desired.

    Toasted multigrain bread on a cooling rack

    The Spruce Eats

  7. Line bread or rolls with lettuce leaves and spread tuna salad on lettuce. Add a slice or two of thinly sliced tomato, if desired.

    Open-faced half of a Southern tuna salad sandwich topped with tomato slice

    The Spruce Eats

  8. Serve tuna sandwiches with sliced dill pickles and potato chips or french fries.

Glass Bakeware Warning

Do not use glass bakeware when broiling or when a recipe calls to add liquid to a hot pan, as glass may explode. Even if it states oven-safe or heat-resistant, tempered glass products can, and do, break occasionally.

Tips

  • If you wish to use fresh albacore turn, you can poach it to use instead of canned tuna. Put two to three (4-ounce) albacore tuna steaks in a sauté pan of simmering salted water. Cook until the tuna is cooked through, about 3 to 5 minutes. Drain well and flake the fish. Continue with the recipe.
  • To make hard-boiled eggs, place one or two large eggs in a small saucepan and cover with water to a depth of about 1 inch above the egg. Bring the water to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover the pan and remove it from the heat. Let stand without removing the cover for about 15 minutes. Pour cold water over the egg. When the egg has cooled, peel and chop it, and then add the chopped egg to the tuna salad.
  • This tuna salad can be stored in the refrigerator for up to three days.

Recipe Variations

  • You can substitute 1 to 2 teaspoons of finely chopped dill for the dill pickle in the tuna salad.
  • For extra color and flavor, add some fresh chopped chives or parsley to the tuna salad.
  • Add zing to the filling with 1 teaspoon or more of yellow mustard, Creole mustard, or spicy mustard along with the mayonnaise.
  • As an alternative to bread, serve in a large tomato cut into a fan shape to hold the salad.
  • For a tuna melt, heap the tuna salad onto bread, and top with cheese and a slice of tomato. Broil open face, brown in a skillet, or use a panini press to heat the sandwich.
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
158 Calories
11g Fat
1g Carbs
14g Protein
×
Nutrition Facts
Servings: 3 to 4
Amount per serving
Calories 158
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 11g 14%
Saturated Fat 2g 10%
Cholesterol 72mg 24%
Sodium 383mg 17%
Total Carbohydrate 1g 1%
Dietary Fiber 0g 2%
Total Sugars 1g
Protein 14g
Vitamin C 1mg 6%
Calcium 26mg 2%
Iron 1mg 4%
Potassium 200mg 4%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)